Project Highlight: University of Nevada
The University of Nevada at Reno was beginning to feel the squeeze. Facing and bracing for an anticipated 10 percent increase in student enrollment, the university needed to build additional housing on campus to accommodate the influx of new students. The Reno project was substantial. An eight-story, 115,000 square foot dormitory needed to be completed before the start of the next school year in September.
The new building would be built directly next to an existing brick dormitory. Therefore, it would need to blend in and have the same look and feel of traditional brick. The new dormitory also had to be durable. It would be the home away from home for more than 260 college students for decades to come. The young residents would not be the only test of the building’s durability. Buildings on the Reno campus, which stand some 5,000 feet above sea level, are subjected to thermal shock. Daily temperatures can swing wildly in Reno from sixty degrees in the afternoon to ten degrees below at night. “The dorm had to be built like a jail. It had to be bulletproof inside and out,” said Ken Rose, the project architect from Sweeney and Rose in Reno, Nevada. It needed to be built fast. It needed to be done right.
Using costly traditional brick, which would add weeks to the already tight schedule, was not a viable option. The answer was Dryvit’s revolutionary Custom Brick finish. Representatives from Dryvit met and worked closely with the project team. “The first presentation, we saw the potential. The second time, it was real close. The third time we said, ‘That’s it.’ We had the color, the size and the texture,” said Mr. Rose. Jeff Falk, from Dryvit distributor CALPLY, reports that the New York template was selected from a variety of Custom Brick templates that are available.
Custom Brick proved to be a great choice. According to Mr. Falk, “The job came in well under budget and was finished ahead of schedule.” Ron Wellman of RDA, the Reno firm which applied the Custom Brick, agreed. He estimates that the decision to use Custom Brick over traditional brick shaved at least four months off the construction schedule, allowing workers to get a well-needed head start finishing off work on the interior of the building. “Custom Brick gave us the design speed we wanted, the look we wanted and the structural performance we wanted. The contractors did a fantastic job. Dryvit was exceptional. We couldn’t ask for a better team. You can run your fingers over it and can’t tell the difference. Seriously, it’s amazing,” said Mr. Rose.
cover image © Dryvit Systems Inc.
